Ya don’t.
Yeesh. I know. I went there.
Starting this off with some negative vibes. Hate that!
Ok. Positive vibes.
Unicorns!
Just plug a bunch of unicorns into an email and you’re good to go, right?
I don’t have to tell you that’s wrong. I know you’re smart.
But seriously.
How do you design an email you’re proud to send?
What are the best practices for I-WANT-TO-BUY-THAT-RIGHT-NOW emails?
As a strategist and email sender extraordinaire, I’m gonna give you a few tips.
1. Find out what your audience likes!
How? Do some testing. It’s really not that hard.
Do they like big, bold images?
Do they just want some plain old copy thrown up on their screen?
Do they want pictures of puppies? (The answer is always going to be yes on that one)
Every audience is different.
Some will really appreciate your use of color blocks and going off the grid.
Some won’t care.
Some will love your 50 chapters on how to tie a sailor’s knot in one email.
Some will hate it.
Test it out and see what resonates.
You may be surprised at what you find.
2. At the minimum remember you have less than 30 seconds to get someone to read your emails.
UNLESS they are a SUPER fan and read every word of every email you send. Then keep writing to those 2 people on your list.
OR experiment with eye-popping fonts or colors.
Research a fun image that you think really gets your point across.
Have FUN with your design!
Don’t stay stagnant and send the same old stuff out over and over again.
You’ll get bored and so will your audience.
Mix up your fonts, your colors and your images.
(Even if it’s not 100% on brand. Eek! I know! Don’t tell those brand strategists about me!)
3. Give your content breathing room!
Over half of emails are viewed on a mobile device.
That means you have thumb-happy readers.
Give them something to scroll about.
You don’t have to cram every single thing into 1000 pixels.
Let it breathe.
Give your copy some room. And by that, I mean line height. Start at 140%.
The more cramped it looks, the harder it is to read. Which means your audience won’t waste the time to read it.
